[category]
[title]
Miami Beach is getting a swanky new place to disappear into. Bar Shishi, a Japanese-inspired cocktail lounge hidden on the third floor of luxury office building Class X by RIVANI, opens September 19 just steps from Lincoln Road, bringing hand-carved ice, vinyl DJs, Wagyu katsu and cocktails that make ordering “just one” a cute little lie.
The nearly 2,000-square-foot lounge comes from the h.wood Group, the Los Angeles hospitality company behind spots including Delilah and The Nice Guy. The idea is to channel Tokyo’s tucked-away cocktail bars and intimate listening rooms.
The room itself leans dark and sultry, with wood, stone and marble, amber lighting, jewel-toned accents and curving banquettes. A 12-seat bar anchors the space, while a vinyl DJ booth and 108 private spirits cabinets give the lounge a distinctly members-club-ish feel. Those cabinets are for annual RIVANI members, complete with personalized plaques and priority reservations.
Behind the bar, senior bar manager (and certified Japanese Ice Master) Kevin Lee is putting a Miami spin on Japanese cocktail techniques with hand-carved diamond ice, shaved-ice cocktails, Japanese cobbler shaking and cocktail throwing, and house-made bitters, tinctures and infusions.
The drinks sound dangerously good. The Guava Kakigōri combines rum, guava, yuzu and shiso in a sculptural take on Japanese shaved ice, while the Hakushu 12 Old Fashioned is served over one of Lee’s hand-carved ice diamonds. There’s also a Point Zero built around rum and tropical fruit, plus a Lychee Martini made with lychee, bergamot and shochu.
The food is designed for grazing between drinks, with hamachi crudo, hand rolls, maki and a Lion Crunch Roll featuring crab, avocado, tuna and sweet soy. More substantial options include chicken karaage and wagyu katsu with A5 wagyu and caramelized onions on milk bread. There’s also Japanese eggplant, caviar and desserts including a matcha sugar cookie with miso caramel and yuzu sorbet with berries.
Not to mention the soundtrack. Eddie McDonald, the musical director and record curator for Anderson .Paak’s DJ Pee .Wee project, has assembled more than 100 records for the room, moving through deep house, funk, soul, disco and Latin influences. The music starts conversational and gets considerably less so as the night progresses. Just like us!
Bar Shishi will be open to the public Wednesday through Saturday from 7pm until close. During weekdays from noon to 5pm, it will operate as an amenity exclusively for RIVANI members and their guests.
In other words: Miami Beach just got another place to drink, but this one is hiding upstairs and making you work a little to find it. Which, frankly, makes the first martini taste better.